TRAVELLING TOWARDS THE TRANSITION
Theoretical and practical courses to prepare for the transition.
Second edition
From March to June 2011 the Torri Superiore Ecovillage is holding a series of courses oriented around the goal of creating a world which uses much less fossil fuels and has a greatly reduced environmental impact.We wish to learn and to teach how to consume less and how to do it in a responsible way, how to develop the local economy and to make a commitment to increase our well being and joie di vivre: in short, we would like to make concrete steps towards the Decrescita Felice (sustainable contraction), following the positive example of the Transition Town movement.
The program “Travelling Towards the Transition” is part of the project "The transition journey - Sustainability to Touch" financed by the "GRUNDVIG - Lifelong Learning Programme" of the European Union.
All prices include the course, related materials and full pension for the days of the course (from the evening before to the lunch of the last day) in shared rooms. The prices in brackets are for those who live nearby and wish to come to the course but not stay at Torri Superiore, and include the course, reference materials and lunch each day.
Please notice: all courses will be held in Italian.
To look at the Terms and Conditions click here.
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5 / 6 MARCH
- Vegetarian cooking, with Daniela Morgana 11 / 13 MARCH
- Animal Traction – working with donkeys, with Marco Spinello 26 / 27 MARCH
- Facilitation and consensus decision making, with Lucilla Borio 2 / 3 April
- Introduction to Biochar, with Nathaniel Mulcahy 9 / 10 APRIL
- Basketwork, with Aleksandra Marks 16 / 17 APRIL
- Introduction to biodynamic gardening, with Stefano Cattapan 30 APRIL / 1 MAY
- Transition Training, with Ellen Bermann 7 / 8 MAY
- Collecting and cooking herbs, with Mauro Vaglio 14 / 15 MAY
- Home production of natural soap and creams, with Lucilla Borio 21 / 22 MAY
- Emphatic communication, with Eduardo Montoya 28 / 29 MAY
- Introduction to traditional techniques for making felt with water and soap, with Gaia Di Lana 30 MAY / 12 JUNE
- Permaculture Design - 72 hour certificate course, with Massimo Candela, Stefano Soldati and Fabio Pinzi 10 / 12 JUNE
- Building with clay, with Stefano Soldati 25 / 26 JUNE
- Living, working and growing together, with Willi Maurer and Claudia Panico
5 / 6 MARCH
Vegetarian cooking
With Daniela Morgana
Euro 220 (without accommodation Euro 150)
The course will be held over 2 days, from Saturday the 5th to Sunday the 6th of March, and is open to a maximum of 15 participants (minimum 6).
11 / 13 MARCH
Animal Traction – working with donkeys
With Marco Spinello
Euro 270 (without accommodation Euro 180)
Learn the basics of working with donkeys, from how to take care of them to carrying loads, ploughing and doing other agricultural work. The course includes: general care of donkeys; training donkeys for work; agricultural implements for donkeys from the Association Prommata (plough, harness, spring tooth plow, harrow, pack saddle and more); agronomy and the application of ecological farming with donkeys; transport of loads with pack saddle. Practical work in the gardens, special techniques for loading wood.
Marco Spinello
Marco Spinello from "La Masca" (goat and dairy farm) has been working with donkeys for many years and is the representative in Italy of Asinoi (Asti) and PROMMATA (http://www.prommata.org/index.php), a French organisation which promotes animal traction and produces tools such as ploughs for donkeys and horses. Marco will be helped by Simon Clissold, a resident of Torri Superiore who has been working there for the last 2 years with his donkeys.
The course will be held over 3 days, from Friday the 11th to Sunday the 13th of March, and is open to a maximum of 15 participants (minimum 6).
26 / 27 MARCH
Facilitation and consensus decision making
With Lucilla Borio
Euro 220 (without accommodation Euro 150)
The course will be held over 2 days, from Saturday the 26th to Sunday the 27th of March, and is open to a maximum of 20 participants (minimum 6).
2 / 3 APRIL
Introduction to Biochar
With Nathaniel Mulcahy
Euro 220 (without accommodation Euro 150)
Learn the basics of Biochar production and the use of Biochar from Nathaniel Mulcahy founder of World Stoves (http://worldstove.com) who produce a vast range of stoves to make Biochar. Biochar not only fixes carbon from the atmosphere and therefore helps to mitigate the effects of climate change but also is a fertilizer and a very good material for water retention in soil. Biochar offers many opportunities for small scale farmers in Italy and during the course we will cover in particular the use of Biochar in vegetable gardens and olive groves.
Nathaniel Mulcahy
For years Nathaniel has lived in Tortona where he invented, among other things, the LuciaStove that burns 300 gms of biomass for every 100 grams of Biochar produced. Thousands of LuciaStove’s are already in operation in diverse countries such as Uganda, Indonesia, Zaire, etc.
The course will be held over 2 days from Saturday the 2nd to Sunday the 3rd of April and is open to a maximum of 20 participants (minimum 6).
9 / 10 APRILE
Basketwork
With Alexandra Marks
Euro 220 (without accommodation Euro 150)
The course will be held over 2 days, from Saturday the 9th to Sunday the 10th of April, and is open to a maximum of 10 participants (minimum 7).
16 / 17 APRIL
Introduction to biodynamic gardening
With Stefano Cattapan
Euro 220 (without accommodation Euro 150)
Learn the basics of biodynamics and how it is applied to gardens and orchards. From the origins of biodynamic agriculture (Steiner and anthroposphy) to its development in modern day agriculture, with all related environmental problems (pollution, pesticides, health hazards).
The course will cover the management of organic matter in the soil, what is a truly fertile soil, the world of microorganisms in the soil, the influence of various forces (physical, astral, spiritual etc) according to anthroposophy, green manures and how to use them, the preparation of biodynamic preparations 500 and 501, the management of insect and parasite problems, the biodynamic calendar, the making of herbal teas (using stinging nettle, horsetail, etc), sensitive crystallization and other methods of studying the quality of food.
Stefano Cattapan
Graduated in natural science, Stefano is a scientific consultant of the Botanical Garden and natural oasis of Villarey di Prascorsano (TO), and is a technical inspector for Bios Srl. He is shortly about to take the exam to become a technical inspector for Agribiodynamic in biodynamic agriculture.
The course will be held over 2 days, from Saturday the 16th to Sunday the 17th of April and is open to a maximum of 15 participants (minimum 6).
30 APRIL / 1 MAY
Transition training
With Ellen Bermann
Euro 300 (without accommodation Euro 230)
It's the basic training recommended to all those who intend to start a transition initiative in their community. The 2 day workshop offers an overview of the theory behind Transition Towns Movement and foresees many experiential and interactive moments. It covers themes linked to the "outer" transition (peak oil, climate change, disfunctions within the system) and those of the the "inner" transition (psycology of change, deep ecology).
The course will be held over 2 days, from Saturday the 30th April to Sunday the 1st of May, and is open to a maximum of 24 participants (minimum 10).
7 / 8 MAY
Collecting and cooking herbs
With Mauro Vaglio
Euro 220 (without accommodation Euro 150)
The course will be held over 2 days, from Saturday the 7th to Sunday the 8th of May, and is open to a maximum of 20 participants.
14 / 15 MAY
Home production of natural soap and creams
With Lucilla Borio
Cost Euro 220 (without accommodation Euro 150)
The ecological, ethical and economic reasons for home production of natural creams and soaps: information on the basic ingredients, in particular vegetable oils.
Soaps: technical explanation, security measures, how to create balanced recipes, how to calculate the lye: production of 3 different soaps using the cold-process method (CP).
Creams: technical explanation, discussion about the ingredients. Preparation of 3 different creams (hand, body and face) and a tonic or an aftershave crème.
The participants will take home the products they produce during the course.
Lucilla Borio
Founding member of Torri Superiore Cultural Association and resident of the Ecovillage, since 2002 she has conducted a personal research, theory and practice, on the domestic preparation of personal hygiene products. She collaborates regularly with the Scuola di Pratiche Sostenibili di San Giuliano Milanese, where for many years she has been running courses on the home production of cream and soap.
The course will be held over 2 days, from Saturday the 14th to Sunday the 15th of May, and is open to a maximum of 8 participants.
21 / 22 MAY
Emphatic communication
With Eduardo Montoya
Euro 220 (without accommodation Euro 150)
The course will be held over 2 days, from Saturday the 21st to Sunday the 22nd of May, and is open to a maximum of 15 participants (minimum 6).
28 / 29 MAY
Introduction to traditional techniques for making felt with water and soap
A journey from carded wool to creating objects for everyday use.
With Gaia
Euro 220 (without accommodation Euro 150)
Introduction to what is felt, the history, myths and legends relating to it, the situation in Italy of wool production; familiarisation with the material; see and touch dirty wool, clean wool, wool cleaned and carded and begin to familiarise ourselves with felt. After the first attempts at making felt from wool we will make a simple object such as a plate mat or a little rug and finally an object in 3 dimension such as a bag or slippers.
Gaia (Gaia di Lana)
Her little felt workshop in the mountains of Alto Verbano is where Gaia follows her personal passion to rediscover ancient crafts and makes a small contribution to the construction of another perspective on the knowledge of traditional skills. After a career as an information technician, Gaia chose to dedicate herself full time to the revaluation of a material completely forgotten. She chose to work with felt attracted by its versatility and by the magic of its long history. She follows the entire process of making felt products, from selecting the wool from shepherds of Verbano, to the washing, carding and making the final product.
The course will be held over 2 days, from Saturday the 28th to Sunday the 29th of May, and is open to a maximum of 15 participants (minimum 6).
30 MAY / 12 JUNE
Permaculture Design
72 Hour certificate course
With Massimo Candela, Stefano Soldati and Fabio Pinzi
Euro 780
Returning to Torri Superiore after 6 years is the Permaculture Design - 72 certificate course. Permaculture has been defined as applied ecology. It is the planning of sustainable human habitats and covers many diverse themes: land, climate, wildlife, agricultural production, creation of a sustainable economy, the built environment and more.
Permaculture has as its basis the observance of nature as the guiding principle to creating a permanent culture. It is also a philosophical model that can be applied in our everyday life, that asks us to begin the change starting from now.
The 72 hour module is the standard course recognised by all the International Permaculture Academies. Upon its completion, those interested can continue their studies with the Accademia Italiana di Permacultura (www.permacultura.it) to finally achieve the Diploma in Applied Permaculture, which takes around 2 years to complete.
Massimo Candela
Massimo is a resident of the Ecovillage of Torri Superiore and in 2000 was one of the first organizers of the 72 hour module course in Italy.
In 2003 he was one of the first in Italy to complete the Diploma of Permaculture (received from the British Permaculture Academy). Since 1990 he has participated in the rebuilding of the Ecovillage of Torri Superiore and today divides his time between running the guesthouse at Torri and farming.
The course will be held over 14 days, from Monday the 30th of May until Sunday the 12th of June and is open to a maximum of 15 participants (minimum 8).
10 / 12 JUNE
Building with clay
With Stefano Soldati
Euro 350 (without accommodation Euro 250)
Clay is an incredible material unfortunalty very much undervalued today. The use of natural materials garantees a healthy and confortable living space. During this course we will learn what the characteristics of clay are, see different techniques and start constructing a small house.
Stefano Soldati
For over 20 years Stefano has been working in organic agriculture. For 17 years he has been travelling the world studying and teaching organic agriculture and the management of organic farms. He was one of the first Italians to receive a diploma in Permaculture and quickly became a teacher and tutor of it. He studied straw bale building in the UK with Barbara Jones and specialized in building with clay at the FAL e.V. centre in Ganzlin Germany. Each year Stefano holds many courses both in Italy and abroad.
The course will be held over 3 days from Friday the 10th to Sunday the 12th of June and is limited to 10 participants (minimum 7).
25 / 26 JUNE
Living, working and growing together
With Willi Maurer and Claudia Panico
Euro 300 (without accommodation Euro 230)
Willi Maurer
Claudia Panico
The course will be held over 2 days, from Saturday the 25th to Sunday the 26th of June, and is open to a maximum of 15 participants (minimum 10).
TERMS AND CONDITIONS
- The application must be made using the module that will be e-mailed upon request.
- A deposit of 50% is required upon booking.
- In the case of cancellation you will be reimbursed 70% of the deposit up until 21 days before the course, 30% 10 days before the course following which there will be no refund for cancelation.
- The advertised price is for a shared room with all meals included; for a private room without en-suite bathroom (if available) there is a 15 Euro/day surcharge and with en-suite bathroom 20 Euro/day.
- The cost of the course includes all necessary material. (For participants not sleeping in Torri it includes the price of lunches as well.)
- The lessons will be held from 9 to 1 in the morning and from 3 to 6 in the evening with a lunch break from 1-3. The hours of the final afternoon of each course will be variable, to be agreed with the participants.
- We ask that all participants bring their own bath towels.
- For more information or special needs (single room, extra nights, etc.) please contact the office: info@torri-superiore.org.
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